Portable radios and telephones must be designed so that batteries and other power sources can be easily connected to said devices. Of course, once engaged it should be difficult to inadvertently disengage the batteries. That is, it should require a deliberate physical action to disengage the battery from the electronic device. This is due to the fact that users of electronic devices such as telephones and radios do not wish to have the battery disengaged unintentionally, as such disengagement will cause a loss of power in the device, and hence, loss of communication ability.
However, due to demands of the vast consumer market, ease of removal and insertion of a battery pack is a desirable feature. Accordingly, many different types of battery engagement latches have been previously proposed. Examples of these include, those taught in U.S. Pat. No. 5,092,788 to Pristupa, Jr., et al.; U.S. Pat. No. 3,728,664 to Hurst; U.S. Pat. No. 3,969,796 to Hodsdon, et al.; European Patent Publication No. 0445808A1 to Takagi; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,904,549 to Goodwin, et al.
Heretofore, the non-integrally formed latch assemblies consisted of two springs and a latch body. Assembling the latch into a finished battery pack product was extremely difficult as the springs used were quite small and difficult to untangle and insert. Moreover, the springs tended to fall out of the pocket in the latch assembly prior to final assembly. Accordingly, a need exists for a latch that facilitates easy connection of a battery pack onto an electronic device, such as a radio housing or cellular telephone, and further provides for easy removal therefrom. The latch should also provide protection against accidental or unintentional removal the battery, while being easy to assemble and highly reliable.